


better places

by maevestrom



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Blacksmithing, CW: alcohol, Coming Out, F/F, Guilt, Hiding, Horrible People, Learning to Fight, Lesbians, Loss, Saleswomen, The Abyss (Three Houses), cw: homophobic violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:35:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27115484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maevestrom/pseuds/maevestrom
Summary: Both Jezebel and Hapi ran from bad situations to worse, but maybe it's fate that the two nicest people in The Abyss (or twin high-maintenance machines depending on who you ask) have had paths that ran into each other.(Takes Place From Chapters 2-4 in FE3H)
Relationships: Blacksmith/Hapi, what the FUCK - Relationship, yea - Relationship
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	better places

**Author's Note:**

> So today is what we call my rebirthday. It's my HRT anniversary to be frank, but if you didn't know I was trans by now uhhh sorry. But yeah, I wanted to do a piece on my rebirthday around one of my favorite trans people in gaming... the blacksmith. Sorry them's the rules. 
> 
> Jezebel is... well, if you ever have seen the fucking gorgeous lady who runs the blacksmith shops both in the Marketplace or Abyss, that's who that is. I have long loved her voice and her attitude and she literally stands there as you do things. I wanted to dedicate a story to her on my rebirthday. 
> 
> Hopefully you love this.

Jezebel doesn't recognize her at first. Hell, she doesn't even see her because she's busy welding a big metal pole into something. Business has been lucrative lately, probably because no one over the age of eight trusts anyone in the Abyss. There's a lot of business in paranoia, it seems. 

A sharp whistle and a sarcastic "hey, while I'm young?" gets her attention. Jezebel knows better than to respond to that sort of attitude from anyone. She's a bitch, but not a dog. Back to work she goes, pole in the fire. A few seconds pass before the girl groans, annoyed, and Jezebel decides to let her off easily. What can she say? Her mercy is a weakness. As is her love of hot girls with windswept orange hair, apparently.

"You wanna try asking politely this time, ma'am? I'm sure someone from back here can help if you do." 

"You're gonna make me sigh," is the exasperated response. 

"Sorry, can't hear you," Jezebel calls. It's way too loud because there's no real diegetic noise on Burrow Street when people decide to arbitrarily turn in. 

"Okay, fine." With a sarcastic rhythm: "Oh, beautiful and lovely blacksmith lately, can I get your friggin' attention?" 

"Sure, Haps." 

Jezebel sets the pole in a safe place for the time being, but it was always just her own little project so she's not too careful. She pulls up to the front of her still where Hapi stands, looking annoyed but also impressed, if you wanna see it enough. 

"How can I help you, sweetheart?" 

Hapi stands there in all of her nihilistic cheer, which isn't very cheerful. There's a stack of things in her hand. "Yuri-Bird told me to turn these into you and gave me some gold." She sets the weapon stack on the counter. "Gimme a second-" 

She digs through her skirt pocket. This silver jacket/short skirt combo has always been a favorite of Hapi's since she wears it everywhere. Funnily, it's also Jezebel's favorite outfit to see on Hapi. There's something so  _ killer queen from the future  _ about it, and like hell Jezebel's gonna cite her for the bare midriff.

"You've been fighting a lot lately?" she asks, ogling at her muscular navel with the subtlety of a bored cat.

"You wouldn't believe it, Juzzy," she moans. "Like, we all see this one lecturer, Chatterbox."

"Oh, you mean Byleth?" 

"I  _ meant  _ Chatterbox, but sure, yours works too."

Jezebel smiles a little deeper as she flits through the swords and mentally prices their repair. If she's not careful the smile won't be ironic. "You were saying, Haps?"

"Yeah, so, what happens is at the end of the month or just in training times, the big lady upstairs gives us a mission we gotta do. Last month it was just taking out bandits, like, no big whoop. This month, though, there's been that rebellion over in Gaspard, wherever that is." 

"Oh. Lonato." Jezebel finishes appraising and counts the money on the counter. Hapi doesn't watchdog her, which is a big sign of trust when everyone else is squirreling away with all your cash. 

"Yeah, that guy." After a second, she thinks aloud "Can't believe the Pope's sending us to do that."

"Sounds like rough work." Like something that she's gonna have to fix the swords real good over. 

"Not really. Apparently they're farmers and landowners. Which makes me wonder, why are  _ we  _ fighting them? Like, normal people? Heck, they're probably nicer than the people down here." 

"They just don't want people like  _ us  _ up there," Jezebel responds. 

"Unless it's to help them kill things at least."

Jezebel nods with a sigh, taking the weapons in her arm. "So you gave me the literal exact amount of coins I charge. Thank you kindly." 

Hapi shakes her head. "Damn. He said if I had any money left over, I could buy a drink."

"Sorry, Haps." Pointing to her pricing board, she says "I can count it out if you want proof." 

Hapi chuckles. "You don't need to do that, Juzz. Thank you." 

"Absolutely," she responds. "I'm gonna take these into the back. You come back anytime, you hear?" 

"I'll do my best, but if I don't I'm probably dead." 

Jezebel wants to tell her not to joke about that, but instead laughs, probably muffled from where Hapi is. "Take care, lovebug," she says into the closet so Hapi can't hear her. 

She starts to stack the weapons that she's to work on. It makes her stomach a little gurgly, knowing what the queen up there wants to use them for. She can't say she's not feeling like an accomplice. Still, business is business, and she'll do what she needs to.

Besides, she doubts anyone in Gaspard would react to her well at all. Barely anyone does. Hapi feels like the first to show her respect since she came out, as a woman and acquaintance. 

She hopes Hapi saw that Jezebel set the exact amount for a drink up on the counter. 

\---

Jezebel has a favorite customer.

Sure, that's not really ethical to play favorites in business but she and the Abyss have done, what, ten ethical things in the last year-type thing? It's nice to just be nice sometimes. Jezebel was nice when she lived at home and years after she was kicked out at sixteen, she tries to maintain a little nice as she's going throughout her seedy and non-seedy business.

Hapi's like that too, except Jezebel can tell that she's itching to be a sweetheart. She doesn't know what Hapi's story is besides her ability to draw in monsters with a sigh that probably got her tossed in this dump. Did she have little siblings that brought out her sweetness? How was she raised? Everything seems like she had a life where she learned kindness before this place took it away.

That's maybe why Jezebel spoils her a little. Show her that not everyone down here's a shithead.

That, and she's Jezebel's favorite customer. 

It's the third of Garland Moon, approximately, when she sees Hapi, as morose as she was last time when she grimly collected the swords. Hope she doesn't think she dried the teardrops enough. 

Hapi opens up her silver half-coat enough to let a little something out. Jezebel appreciates that, but she didn't really expect it to be a kitten.

She sees it stumble onto the counter, mewling like hell. It's gray like smoke and so damn fluffy. "Oh my  _ gosh, _ " she whispers with glee. "Friggin, I  _ love  _ cats."

Hapi half-smiles. Jezebel guesses she's still in the morose phase of everything. She's too pure to be stuck down here, not that it's hard to be the purest in the Abyss.

"Who's a good kitty?" Jezebel asks them in baby talk. After a few seconds twisting their tiny head around, they meow and put their paw onto Jezebel's hand, causing her to cheer. Sad that the creature least disgusted to hold her hand is a disoriented kitty, but she'll take it because this baby is so goshdarn adorable. 

"Good baby," she coos. Looking up at Hapi: "Where'd you find them? There's no shortage of cats around here."

Hapi takes a second to stop staring at Jezebel. She was probably lost in thought- plenty a person here has mastered the thousand yard stare, even here. "Oh! Uh, no, uhm… he was from Gaspard. Saw him after the battle, you know. His momma got…" Hapi shakes her head, and Jezebel sighs. "It was… it just wasn't right." 

She leans onto Jezebel's counter, eyes smoky. "Juzzy, it was all  _ wrong, _ " she breathes _.  _ "We shouldn't have been there. We shouldn't have had to… deal with civilians. Especially the way we were commanded." 

Jezebel sighs; the least she could do is offer a reassuring line. "Oh, Haps… that's just how-" 

Hapi has no intention of stopping. "It's, like, okay, not like none of us down here have had to do that sort of thing. But they weren't thieves. They weren't soldiers. They were people. And we…" Hapi clutches the counter. "I'm gonna sigh if I keep going. But I'm sad as heck, yeah."

It hits Jezebel harder than it should. Yeah, it's bad down here, but hell is supposed to be below the Earth, not atop it. Maybe things work differently down there, but up there should be a different case. 

"I think you should be," Jezebel says. "People will say that's just how it is sometimes. But it's often the same people who decide to make it how it is. And nothing about how they attacked them or how they used you for it is acceptable on any level." 

Hapi nods, head down. Then she almost, almost sighs, but swallows instead. "You know what's saddest, Juzz? Lonato's kid's up there, wondering why his dad did what he did. Wondering why the pope wanted him dead. Wondering why he was ordered to march out. They had him fight his father's people, Juzz. What kind of monster…" 

Jezebel acts on instinct, mostly because the little smoke kitty is being a bit of a bugger. She grabs one of Hapi's hands tightly, hearing Hapi's panicked breath start to slow down. "Okay," Hapi repeats. "Okay, okay. Okay." 

"Honey, all you gotta remember is that you're a force unto yourself. Someone, somewhere will need a Hapi. You gotta decide what machine you wanna be the crucial cog in, you know?" 

"Okay." Hapi sucks in her tears. "Okay, processed that. Thank you." 

"Anytime, Haps." Jezebel kind of likes this. Kind of wishes Hapi would see that Juzzy needed her and she should, you know, decide she needs her too or something. "Anything you need?" 

Hapi snorts. "Unless you have a mask of my own face smiling up at everyone, I'm good." Jezebel snorts as she continues. "Just, I, uh… the kitty. I tried to give him to Freckles, but he turned me down, so I, uh… have a cat now." With a cautious smile, she says "I mean, you like cats. Would you?" 

In a heartbeat, Jezebel wants to say yes. She almost does until she sees Hapi, face streaked with tears she really can't hide. She can't pull off the disinterested gait that she always does and isn't even trying to. She looks sad in a way that's not superficial and the inside of every stupid romantic cell of her body screams  _ make her happy you dumb bitch _

"You know…" 

Jezebel takes the little pile of fluff and sets her in Hapi's hands. They open up and hold the adorable booger, though Hapi seems confused. "I think you need him more than I do right now." 

"I, uh…" Hapi's blushing. For the first time, Jezebel sees no irony on her face, just a dawning revelation and the tiniest smile on her face. Jezebel actually got under her skin in a good way. She's  _ never  _ done that before, but she's never felt like a part of someone's routine before. 

"Thanks," Hapi says, settling on the most authentic smile she's ever given. "You're a good friend, Juzz." 

Juzz smiles at that. She's never had a real friend before in her whole six years of being. "Thank you, Haps. You too." 

\---

It works like that the whole month of Garland Moon after that. It's a month of routine missions for Hapi that's capped off by the class defending at the Rite of Rebirth instead of, you know,  _ knights.  _

Oh, and there's been details of an assassination attempt on Lady Rhea.

Neither are too fussed over that.

Hapi's Jezebel's guest so often that no one questions it because, as Jezebel guesses, no one's gonna pay attention to the freaks over there. It's okay, she's dealt with that all her life.

Hapi doesn't care what they think, and for once that's a strength. While Jezebel warily notices a few of the other salespeople giving them dirty looks like Jezebel's so-called sins even matter anymore, Hapi gets her own newly wielded axe souped up at Jezebel's twice that month. She talks a mile a minute and it's all that Jezebel chooses to hear.

"Everyone in the village I came from used these. Chopping wood, chopping chickens up-" Jezebel can't keep from grimacing. "Or just clea- oh my gods, okay, I can't take that crapulence from you." She's giggling enough for it not to come off as rude.

"Let's just say where I came from, we didn't have to do much dirty work. So I'm trying not to get too squicked out, but you know how it is for us sheltered ingenue." 

"Sissy." 

"You know it." Jezebel then laughs at her own joke. Hapi gets it a little later, laughter mixed with a shocked disbelief that she went there.

"See, I thought maybe," she begins. "But it just never struck me as a big whoop. You never corrected me when I kept calling you  _ she _ so I was like, neat, it sticks, the end."

Jezebel expected to hear those words of concession a lot from people  _ too  _ charming about her past, but Hapi says it in such an obvious way that that's probably exactly what she did.

"Yeah, I mean… yeah." Jezebel chuckles awkwardly. "Sorry, like, no one's ever been this chill about it, so I'm like, holy moly. People like her exist. And that's hyping me up!" 

Hapi giggles, straight up giggles without anything holding her back. "Oh my God, shut  _ up!  _ I'm not that cool!" 

"Honey, let me tell you. In all six years since I tried to come out and got my ass kicked out at sixteen, you're legitimately the first person to be a decent fucking person about it  _ anywhere _ .

"Me?" Hapi echoes, alarmed. "Jesus, if I'm the nicest person about it, that says a lot." 

"Kind of," Jezebel muses. She toys with the axe handle before looking up at its owner, who has generously bent down to meet her eyes better. "Could also be that you're actually the nicest person here."

Hapi blushes again. "Stop that. I am  _ not. _ " 

"Make me," Jezebel dares, because she's heard from drunk patrons that that's the real way to get someone seduced by you and, hell, Hapi entirely, 100%, unfiltered seems like the type of girl that would make her. Jezebel doesn't even know what she's doing anymore, but it certainly isn't running a blacksmith stall.

A mysterious man cuts them off. "Look, are you two girls gonna take up the whole line chatting away while everyone waits?" 

"Shit," Jezebel whispers. "Sorry, sir. We didn't know there were customers around."

As Hapi tries to step out of the way, the man shows his glass cup full of a very beer-looking liquid. For some reason, glasses of alcohol immediately trigger a fight or flight reaction for Jezebel, likely because she's had too many smashed or poured on her head.

"Hapi, move-"

It's too late. The whole jug of beer ends up doused on Hapi, who shrieks at the freezing impact. "What the hell?" she barks.

The man's only defense is shouting a slur specifically aimed at women being fond of other women. Not the one Jezebel's used to, but it sucks more this time because Hapi's caught up in it, drenched.

"Hapi! Are you okay?" 

The man takes advantage of Jezebel's distraction to face her down, and her last thoughts before getting knocked out are  _ damn, he's  _ flinging _ that mug at- _

_ \--- _

She wakes up on a bed nestled into a small room and thinks  _ goddess' sake, that looks like it barely fits anyone, is this a closet?  _ The second thing she thinks is  _ ow, owwwwwww, my fucking head,  _ and the third is  _ oh shit, I scared Hapi when I yelled. _

"Here," she says suddenly. "Take this. It helps aches." 

"Fuckin' merciful angel, I'll take it." 

Hapi smugly smiles, but it doesn't reach her eyes as she hands Jezebel a couple of tablets. Jezebel downs them, no drink or anything, making Hapi say "holy smokes." 

Jezebel hums. "Always remember the nurses joking that this gag reflex was wasted on a man. Guess I agreed with them."

Hapi hums rather than laughs. Damn, Jezebel thought that was a killer. Reaching to her other side, she pulls out a jug of beer. "There's this too. Just to numb… everything, I guess." 

Not Jezebel's aching heart, but her busted face? One loopy hand swiped reveals quite the bump on her forehead, a bump which Jezebel finds out hurts too late. "Fuck, I'll take it. Fuck!" She swears a few more times and several places where  _ fuck  _ can happen as she takes the mug from Hapi. Foul stuff; she hates it likely because it's always associated with hate crimes against her, but it does the trick. Hapi nods with another knowing smile and takes a drink herself.

"Stop drinking my beer," Jezebel whines.

Hapi smirks. "It's ours. I could only afford one." Then, blushing "because you left just enough for a beer on the counter so I took it but then I felt bad and just went to bed. So technically you bought it and I kind of need it too so-" 

"You need it?" For how slow she's been most of the day, she caught that quick as a whip. 

Hapi cringes and slowly looks at her. "I, uh… yeah, I need it too." 

Jezebel sees it. Her vision is hella fuzzy, but she sees the bandages on Hapi. They're on her nose, arm, and her shirt is up to where bandaging exists on her stomach. 

"Oh, no," she moans. "Sweetheart, not you too."

"I started it," Hapi admits. "Well, continued it, whatever. Once you went down for the count I just, like, hauled off on that prick. The fight happened, he had a friend with a sword, and then Baltie, this big-ass six foot twenty dude, just picked them up and walked off. You should have seen it. They  _ screamed _ !" 

Jezebel shakes her head. "I didn't hear anything after 'friend with a sword'." Accusingly pointing at Hapi's stomach- "That's a sword wound, isn't it?" 

"Oh crap… yeah, that and the shoulder. But Yuri-bird heals, so like, the worst was dealt with. Couldn't heal you, though, it was all surface." 

" _ You almost died _ !"

Hapi looks away. "I don't think it was that bad?" she drawls slowly enough to end it in a question.

"Hapi, why did you do that?" Jezebel shoots up until she realizes, well, guess that hurts, and lies down. "Fuck, I didn't… no one's done that before." 

"Beat up a bozo?" 

"Stick up for me, period!" 

After Hapi gives a squeaky little  _ oh,  _ it falls silent. Jezebel is tense because she doesn't want to say anything, but she feels like she's supposed to tell her tragic backstory. But she doesn't  _ want  _ to have to before she's ready. She doesn't want to think about it, much less talk about it.

Hapi talks instead. "Yeah, I mean… that's how kids were about it. Teens twice my size. I cried about it at first, but my parents told me to fight back. So I did. Didn't help much because, again, twice my size, but that catharsis felt good. But it never changed. I was  _ The Skhal.  _ The mistake. So I ran away… from the best part of my life." 

Hapi groans, leaning her head on the bed. Jezebel pats next to her, scooching back. Hapi points, Jezebel nods, and neither of the two think about it immediately. 

Jezebel realizes  _ oh, this is my room,  _ and that means the bed is very narrow and… well, not putting their wounds in isolated places. Still, as long as Jezebel lies sideways and Hapi doesn't let her lean on her stomach too hard, they're okay-ish. 

When they settle, Jezebel holds out her hands near Hapi's stomach in a request. Hapi just says "watch the wound", so she does, placing her arms just above. Hapi takes the hint and lies sideways, and Jezebel puts her chin on Hapi's ear, boosting her forehead above. After a little rustling, they're good. 

Jezebel takes the opportunity to whisper in Hapi's ear. "Do you wish you never ran away from home?" 

"And ran into the evil scientist lady who did this whole sighing to me? Heck yes." 

"No, no, even if that wasn't a thing. You leave home and live decently. Would you still run?" 

Hapi doesn't say anything but tenses as though she's gonna. Finally, catching her sigh and turning it into a yawn "Guess I would." 

"Yeah. Kinda thought so." 

"Is that bad of me?"

"Hapi, I know how the story goes after I come out. And before I did I knew it would be a failure. There's just… a point we hit where we can't hide away from what's best for us anymore." 

Hapi latches onto Jezebel's wrist. "I don't think I'm capable of lying. I couldn't hide that I liked girls too. Not to the village, not at the Abyss, not at the surface, not you. It's… not always bad. Sometimes it is but… I'll take it, because it means I get to be open. I get to see you. I get to fall for you a little more every time I see you." 

Those are the type of words that Jezebel never expected to hear, ever. She wonders if her breath grows hot on the nape of Hapi's neck. If her arms tense up around sore spots. If this is all a fever dream caused by whatever hit her on the head. Goddamnit, she was supposed to be  _ smooth  _ during this! 

Instead, she chuckles a little, causing Hapi to tilt her head ever so slightly. "You okay, Juzzy?" 

"Hapi," she teases. "That's  _ gay. _ " 

Hapi slaps her hand. "That's the point, dingus." 

"I know, sweet, I know," Jezebel assures her.

Suddenly, something small but ferocious jumps on her legs, causing her to scream. "Hey, what the hell?" 

"Aw crap," Hapi groans. "Babe, I forgot to tell you I brought Vera. Hope you don't mind."

The cat from Gaspard looks back at her, walking on her legs before he decides this is a good spot to sleep, settling down between their crotches.

Jezebel giggles and Hapi just shakes her head. "Whatever you say, Vera." She feels Jezebel still laughing at the little stir, and possibly a little delirium. "I'm gonna guess you're okay with little Verapratz staying with us tonight." 

Jezebel giggles. "No, it's okay. It feels kind of domestic, you know?" 

"You live in an eight by eight room." 

"Yeah," she muses. "So I didn't expect this feeling. I'm not… sure how long it'll last. But right now? Me? A girl I like? Her pet cat?" Vera burrows in a little deeper, and Hapi scoots back so he doesn't fall through. "I… don't think I ever-  _ ever- _ expected this, but I'm… I've never been happier. I didn't know that this would happen." 

"Really? Even Coco caught on. I wasn't very sneaky, you know." 

"Not that," she says, though even though she knew Hapi was being different she  _ never  _ would have guessed in all her life. "That this… would happen, I guess. That's what makes this feel so… rare, I guess."

Glad that her mouth is near Hapi's head, she parts a small bit of formless orange fuzz to kiss the side of her head gently.

Hapi smiles so wide that Jezebel can see it on the side of her face. "Yeah, Juzzy. It's like a linens closet of a room with a one-person bed and twelve injuries as well as a kitten trying his darndest to sleep in my buttcrack." She wiggles again and adds "And the crazy thing is… it's probably the happiest I've ever felt." 

"That's a low bar," Jezebel warns. "For both of us."

Hapi nods and Jezebel can feel it. "I mean, yeah, but… without you, I don't know if I'll get this high again."

Jezebel feels something stir in her. Like her heart finally processed Hapi's words and she realizes that from this moment on, everything has changed, giving her free will to make them happier than they'll ever be. It'll be difficult to keep it up, especially down here, but...

"I'll do my best," she whispers, sinking into Hapi's neck. "I want us to say we ran to better places."

**Author's Note:**

> look she used the trick where she used the title at the end that's... annoying, but yeah. Hopefully charming here! 
> 
> -Maeve


End file.
